Owners of vacant properties can register with Dublin City Council as a vacant space since the end of 2011 and make it available to creative individuals or groups who may need a home for one to six months. Posing as a match-maker, Dublin City Council proposes to put both parties in contact so they can work out the details of the rental through the Cultural Use of Vacant Spaces initiative.

Dublin City arts officer Ray Yeates launched the initiative shortly after his appointment in August 2011 and launched the registry that December to encourage both landlords and artists to make contact. He explained that historically, the council’s property unit has always tried to match people and the properties it owns.

“Dublin hasn’t had as much difficulty up to now with empty properties,” he said. “But we have increasing amount of empty spaces now. We would like to increase artistic activity and visibility, while offering a new social and commercial purpose to the owners of the buildings. That way, the arts continue to make the great contribution to the city that they do, it’s just another avenue.” (more…)